Cassius The Frail
by Voltairus
Summary: Fear the elderly
1. Chapter 1 Pirates

_Alright guys, this is a story I did at the beginning of the year over at the Bethesda forums. It got decntly good reviews. I am revamping it and posting here with some new edits. Enjoy and tell me what you think._

_Voltairus_

The frail, old man slowly lifted himself up from his bed. He winced at the sound of his joints popping, reminding him that he was not as fit as he used to be. A skeleton of his former self if you will. He hobbled slowly over to the window and pulled aside the dusty curtains. Sunlight bathed him in warmth, and for a second the old man felt the pain go away. The view from his window revealed Lake Rumare, calm and serene. The wind gently guided the waves to the shoreline as they slowly ebbed away at the landscape. Sadly, the lake was the only thing worth looking at considering where he lived. Life on the waterfront was not exactly a desired spot for the elderly, but Cassius survived. He never bothered anyone, and no one bothered him.

At the ripe age of 72, his daily routine consisted of; getting up at the crack of dawn, pestering the young for their style and slang, and constant talk about how life was when he was a youngster. He was once good looking but now he wears a crooked nose and wispy, long, white hair that touches his now wimpy shoulders. Shoulders that haven't carried a bedroll or any adventure equipment in decades. Just a skeleton of a skinny Breton with his walking stick.

The view from his other window revealed two pirates beating the hell out of a tiny bosmer. Typical. Cassius sighed, now hobbling over to his trusty walking stick before marching out of his little house. The chilly morning air passed over him and he momentarily debated continuing on. "Hot tea sounds good right about now." He thought. "Nah, damn youngsters!" And he started up again, heading towards the scene outside his window. The two pirates were still giving the bosmer a beating and on occasion they'd throw in an insult here and there. Cassius walked into their peripheral vision, causing them to stop and look up.

"What do you want old man, this isn't a show, now scram!" One of the pirates said clenching their fists.

"You don't scare me punk! I've killed goblins bigger than you," Cassius barked. "Now let this kid go, you've done enough here." Cassius straightened up his posture to attempt to look more intimidating. His interjection caused the bosmer to look up, his nose all bloodied up and his cheeks bruised.

The two pirates gave each other a questioning look as if saying, "Is this guy serious?" They stepped over the bosmer, who scrambled away and watched from a short distance as the offenders closed in around Cassius. "Look here grandpa, what we do is none of your business, I'd suggest you get your saggy ass back in your hut before something bad happens." The pirate finished that sentence with a hard poke to Cassius' chest, causing him to step back.

"That was not a smart move, punk!" Cassius said as he raised his walking stick.

"Stop playing around!" The pirate attempted to take the stick from Cassius but was immediately electrocuted and he crumpled to the ground, slightly smoking. The other pirate saw this and backed away slowly raising his hands in surrender. A fireball was emitted from Cassius's hand and flung at the pirate, who in turn caught fire. He ran around for sometime before diving into the lake. Other pirates who were working the docks took notice of what was going on and drew their swords and approached the unlikely duo.

"Come on kid," Cassius said to the young bosmer, who stood in awe at the events that just transpired, "We gotta go!"


	2. Chapter 2 Trapdoor

"Hey! Get the wax out of your ears! Let's go or you'll get mauled!" Cassius's words shook the bosmer from his stupor. Four pirates were making there way towards the old breton as he attempted to flee as fast as his old age would let him.

The bosmer caught up to him, ignoring the ensuing pirates, "How did you do that with a walking stick?"

"I was expecting more of a thank you, but I guess politeness and good manners are a thing of the past. Something lost to your generation I suppose." Cassius scoffed.

"Oh sorry sir, thank you for saving me from a longer beating." The brown haired bosmer youth apologized, shaking his head in embarrassment.

"It's a staff first of all." Cassius said, correcting the elf. "I picked it up from a goblin witch I killed ages ago." The two rounded the corner of Cassius's house and rushed in, slamming the door behind them. Cassius barred it and then hurriedly searched for something unclear to the youngster.

"You do know we are being surrounded by pirates as we speak, could you hurry it up sir." The bosmer said in a panicky tone, looking around nervously and stopped looking at looked at the kid.

"Listen big ears.."

"Andre."

"Andre. I'm looking for the trap door our of here, so give me a break or start looking!" Cassius went back to what he was doing, pounding on the floor boards to see if a hollow sound would make itself known. Andre joined, pressing his foot along the pirates began pounding on the door, searching for a way in.

CREEEAAK!

"Found it!" Andre exclaimed while jumping up and down excitedly.

"Okay good. Now open it and help me down." Andre obeyed and opened the latch, pulling up the wood, revealing a dark hole. An earthy smell filled the room. Cassius made his way over to the ladder and slowly bent down to get a good grip. Andre assisted but kept a worried eye on the door which seemed to be coming apart from the beatings the pirates were giving it. The attackers began to seek other ways in, approaching the windows and shattering them, yelling obscenities and threats to the duo.

Cassius was slowly but surely moving down the ladder. Andre hurriedly followed and closed the trap door, locking it behind him just as the pirates burst in and infiltrated the hut.

"After them!" A raspy voice barked from three feet above Andre's head. Boots pounded the floor all around the trap door, while a cacophony of noises sounded all over the house from yells to smashed objects to breaking glass.

Andre reached the bottom. Darkness. The earth floor was muddy and reeked of some foul odor. Andre felt a tug on his shoulder and spun around.

"Don't wet yourself kid, here." Cassius's staff lit up at the tip, providing some light. "I'm Cassius by the way, forgive my forgetfulness."

"Forgive my rudeness." Andre replied with a shaky voice.

"Deal. Lets move before they scale down the ladder." Cassius advised as he turned and began to make his way down the man made tunnel.

Andre followed but as he stepped he heard an "AHA!" from above.

Cassius stopped and turned back to Andre, "You don't by any chance have a weapon on you, do you?" Andre shook his head, "Damn. Come quickly then. Lets try to make some distance before this gets ugly."


	3. Chapter 3 Growing A Pair

The ladder started to shake with the shifting of the pirates' weight as they scaled down it. Cassius and Andre fled down the dark tunnel, which was dimly illuminated by Cassius' staff."This tunnel eventually leads into the sewers. From there I think we can squeeze through a drainage pipe." Cassius explained.

"What about the pirates?" Andre inquired worriedly. "We cant avoid a fight." His voice screeching on the last word.

"Well you will just have to compose yourself and act like a man." Cassius replied, pausing before saying, "Don't tell me you're still going through puberty?"

"You saw me fight.." Andre's sentence was cut off by the old man.

"You call that a fight? Ha! Laying on the ground in fetal position?" Cassius retorted.

"Just get us out of here. You know magic, make us invisible or something." Andre said attempting to change the subject.

"It doesn't work like that kid. Its time to make a stand." Cassius stopped at a dead end.

"What happened to the sewers?" Andre asked in a panicky voice.

Cassius replied in a calm tone, "You just let me worry about that." He crouched down and grabbed at rock wall, searching for something. After what seemed like forever, Cassius grabbed the right rock.

CLINK!

The wall started to move to the side, revealing the stone walls and smells of the sewers. The pirates had all touched the ground and started moving towards the duo. Cassius and Andre slipped into the sewers and scampered up steps that were conveniently placed nearby. They began to climb while the sounds of the pirates' footsteps grew louder and louder. Andre began to panic and began pushing Cassius up the grimy steps in order to go faster.

"You're such a coward! Grow a pair!" Cassius yelled.

They reached the top of the steps and turned down a small corridor, approaching a sad excuse for a wooden door. They forced it open and found themselves outside again, at the base of a hill.

"Get above us and find a heavy rock, do you understand?" Cassius instructed.

Andre jetted past Cassius and climbed atop the manmade hill above the door. He found a rock and attempted lifting it. He had a hard time managing to pick it up and vowed to work out if he survived. Meanwhile, Cassius stood ten feet from the door, waiting. Andre struggled to keep the rock up, his face turning red from the strain. They could hear the yells of the pirates as they picked up the trail and began to close in.

"I'll take the first one, Andre, then you get the second." Cassius yelled up to him.

"Quick over here, I hear the old mans voice!" The raspy voice said from beyond the door.

BAM!

They crashed through. Cassius summoned up a fire ball and flung it at the first man. It was a successful hit that sent the man reeling back into the second man, who was knocked off his bearings. This gave Andre ample time to aim the rock. He whirled it down on the remaining pirate's head and with a THUNK he was felled.

There were still two pirates left and decided to rush Cassius, deeming him the bigger threat by far. Andre sprinted over to his aid, adrenaline pumping, overwhelming his fear. The two pirates drew their swords. One came at Cassius who blocked it with his staff, sending an electric jolt, causing the man to drop his sword just in time for Andre to jump on his back and attempt to wring his neck.

This confusion distracted the second pirate who received a staff blow to the temple, courtesy of Cassius. Andre's opponent however, was not willing to go down so easily, for he was a rather big man. He grabbed and pulled at Andre's own head trying to flip him over, but the skinny runt of a bosmer clung on. Cassius found this rather amusing and decided to watch for a bit more. He observed with a smile as he saw the intense expression on Andre's face as he squeezed and squeezed. The pirate turned blue and grunted, soon crumpling to the ground. Andre hopped off of the burly pirate in order to observe the scene before him. Two pirates lay dead at the door, one smoking, while the other two lay before Cassius and Andre. They took a moment to absorb it in silence.

After a moment, Cassius broke the silence by giving out a boisterous laugh and clapped the puny bosmer on his back. "Seems there is a bit of a fighter in you yet."


	4. Chapter 4 Andre The Skull Crusher

"Andre The Strangler?"

"No." Andre replied flatly, walking on. By now, the sun was starting to set. The duo had just gotten on a path around the Imperial City.

Cassius thought it funny to give Andre a slew of names. "Andre The Rock Hurler?"

"No. Lets find a tavern or something I'm hungry."

"Killing makes you hungry, huh?" Cassius said with a smile.

"What's gotten into you old man?" Andre inquired, slightly annoyed. He stopped to address the old, grinning breton who leaned on his staff for support.

"You went from being a little whimp an hour ago to having two kills under your belt. You didn't chicken out on me when those two pirates attacked like I presumed," Cassius explained. "I mean don't get me wrong, I could have had a field day with them, but you grew a pair and fought like a man. Well almost a man," Cassius said thinking back to the fight and how Andre clung on for dear life to the pirate's back. Just as he finished that sentence the old man stumbled, causing him to swear as he stubbed his toe on a rock. His joints gave way and caused him to kneel down to take a break and rub his sore foot.

"A field day, huh?" Andre said with a grin.

"Don't think of me as I am now, old and tired. Think of me back at the hill or defending you're scrawny ass at the waterfront." Cassius replied.

He had a point. Cassius was very spry for his age Andre recalled, as he thought back to him climbing down the ladder at his house, or fleeing from the pirates. Obviously an easy task for young people but not for a 72 year old. To Andre, Cassius was pretty remarkable and even though he was treated like a punk teenager, he grew a liking to him already.

"Lets stay at the inn at Weye. It's pretty close and we won't have to worry about pirates there hopefully." Andre said.

"Sounds good, these old bones need a rest. I know the innkeeper there anyway." Cassius replied, using the staff to help himself up.

The sun had set by the time they got to the Inn, because of the slow pace set by Cassius. That was fine by Andre, he was in his debt after all. Andre opened the door and helped Cassius over the step.

"You're not that much of a punk after all." Cassius stated before adding, "As insulted as I am that you're helping me, thinking I am not able enough. I am more embarrassed to accept it." Cassius said with a light smile.

"You're lucky I don't push you down these steps, you old kook!" Andre playfully replied, shutting the door behind them.

As they made their way to the bar, the innkeeper glanced up, recognizing Cassius. "Well look who it is. Cassius The Caster at my Inn. How lucky am I?" The man said this with slight sarcasm and a smile.

"Everyone's a jokester today. Get me a pint of ale, would you?" Cassius requested as he took a seat.

"And who is this punk kid you got with you? Servant?" The innkeeper questioned while cleaning a glass, looking over at Andre.

"I'm not Cassius The Frail and Incompetent!" Cassius spat. "I may be old, but I need no help. This is my partner, Andre The Skull Crusher." The old man said, gesturing to the puny looking bosmer.

Andre's eyes lit up after hearing him say "partner". He never had a role model or anyone to look up to. Hell, he hadn't had any close relationships at all. So even though Cassius gave him grief, he was quite fond of him even though it has only been a few hours.

"This pencil neck?" The innkeeper said, sizing the skinny elf up. "Why he looks like he can barely crush a walnut." Andre sat in silence while the innkeeper laughed.

"You haven't seen him in action, friend. Looks can be deceiving. Get him a pint as well."

"Cassius, look at me, I'll be puking half way through that."

"Lighten up kid, it will put some hair on your chest. Akatosh knows you need it." Cassius replied.

The innkeeper slammed down a frothy glass before Andre and smirked, the golden liquid swayed back and forth over the glass, spilling a little onto the spotty bar. "Drink up punk."


End file.
